Article by Kaly Halkawt

NYU film student, Gabrielle Demeestere, who recently submitted her short The Last Cigarette to ÉCU 2010’s Non-European Dramatic Short category discusses the humorous side of smoking.

Q: Tell me briefly about your film?

The Last Cigarette is a short comedy I directed in my first year of graduate school at NYU film school. It tells the story of Lise, a French tourist, who finds herself alienated by her smoking habit in New York City.

Q: How did you come up with the idea for The Last Cigarette?

Our assignment at NYU was to come up with a four-minute film that takes place outdoors and without dialogue. I liked the idea of a tourist wandering around New York City dealing with small moments of alienation and observing the cultural differences around her. And comedy felt like the natural place to develop these observations of clashing perceptions and habits.

Q: What inspired you to create this film?

The actress who plays Lise (Amélie Vrla) has a Modigliani-like face and I thought it would be interesting to film her in an American environment. I also felt inspired by places in New York that I love, that have been around forever and are slowly disappearing in a more corporate and cleaned up Manhattan: East River Park, the outdoor mural at Veselka diner in the East Village etc. I wanted to play on the image of a disappearing, more bohemian Manhattan–before exercising and shiny gym outfits–and the idea of smoking seemed like the perfect metaphor to express the clash between the old and the new.

Q: Why did you choose to portray the French this particular way?

I’m half-French, half-American and grew up in Paris and I myself have a French tendency to take exception to American rules, which can sometimes seem overly rigid and slightly absurd (like jaywalking etc.) I thought there was a lot of humor to be found in those kinds of situations: Lise lighting her cigarette in an outdoor café where smoking is forbidden etc.

Q: When Coco Avant Chanel premiered in France the city of Paris banned the poster where Audrey Toutou is holding a cigarette. What are your thoughts about smoking on film?

A cinematographer once told me that smoking makes black and white film look beautiful. So there is clearly a visual and atmospheric quality to smoking on film. On the other hand, it’s a deadly habit and I can understand why some people think it shouldn’t be used for promotional purposes, on film posters etc.

Q: Why did you choose to film it in black and white?

I chose black and white to play up the idea of a disappearing, old Manhattan and was also hoping to give it both a poetic and an old Buster Keaton comedy feel.

Q: Tell me about your next or current project.

I’m currently in pre-production on my second year film at NYU, The Donut Hole, about a Russian woman who goes to Martha’s Vineyard looking for a husband, traveling with her 12 year old son. The film will be shot on super-16mm color film and explores the experience of Russian immigrant women in the US.